CVE-2013-6208
Official description Straight from the sourceThe vendor's or NVD's own wording, published unedited. Authoritative, but often terse — it says what broke, rarely what to do.
NVD · uneditedUnspecified vulnerability in HP Smart Update Manager 5.3.5 before build 70 on Linux allows local users to gain privileges via unknown vectors.
Technical summary Written by usOur analysis, written from the advisory, the CVSS vector and the affected-version data. It adds context the advisory leaves out, and never invents facts that are not in the source.
dbcve analysis · moderate confidenceHP Smart Update Manager 5.3.5 before build 70 on Linux contains a local privilege escalation vulnerability allowing local users to gain elevated privileges. The specific attack vector is not disclosed (marked as 'unspecified'), but the CVSS score of 7.2 indicates high-impact local privilege gain.
Verify against the referenced sources before acting — the references below are authoritative for this CVE, this summary is not.
Affected products & versions What the vendor confirmedThe version ranges the vendor confirmed as vulnerable. If your version sits inside a range here, treat yourself as exposed until you have upgraded.
NVD · CPE data= 5.3.5CVSS breakdown How the score is builtThe industry scoring standard. It rates how the flaw is reached, what it takes to exploit, and what an attacker gains — the score is derived from those, not the other way round.
From the vector- Attack vector
- Local
- Complexity
- Low
- Authentication
- None
- Confidentiality
- Complete
- Integrity
- Complete
- Availability
- Complete
AV:L/AC:L/Au:N/C:C/I:C/A:C
Am I affected? How to checkSteps we derive from the advisory and the affected-version data, so you can decide whether this CVE reaches your setup. They are a guide, not a scan — your own configuration is the authority.
dbcve checksWork through these to decide whether this CVE applies to you.
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Identify installed HP Smart Update Manager versionLocate and inspect the HP SUM installation directory or use system package management tools to query the installed version numberAffected if The installed version shows 5.3.5 but the build number is below 70, or the version cannot be determined to be build 70 or later
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Verify the build number of HP Smart Update ManagerCheck the build or revision information within the HP SUM installation, typically found in version files, about dialogs, or executable metadataAffected if The build number is less than 70 or cannot be verified to be 70 or later
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Confirm HP SUM service status and execution contextInspect running processes to determine if HP Smart Update Manager service or daemon is currently active and note the user context it runs underAffected if The service runs under a privileged account (such as root or administrator) while the vulnerability is present
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Review file permissions on HP SUM directoriesExamine the ownership and permission settings on the HP Smart Update Manager installation directory and associated configuration filesAffected if Low-privileged local users have write or execute permissions to critical HP SUM binaries, libraries, or configuration files
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Audit local user access to HP SUM binariesCheck which local user accounts have execute access to HP Smart Update Manager executable files and scriptsAffected if Untrusted local user accounts have direct access to execute HP SUM binaries or scripts that operate with elevated privileges
A system is affected if HP Smart Update Manager version 5.3.5 with a build number below 70 is installed and accessible to local users.
Generated from the published advisory. Verify against your own configuration.
Remediation Closing itWhat it takes to close this. Where a vendor fix exists we point at it; where none exists we say so plainly, and can build one. Effort estimates are scoped from the advisory, not from your codebase.
From vendor dataUpdate HP Smart Update Manager to build 70 or later. If immediate patching is not feasible, limit local server access to trusted administrators only and monitor for suspicious process activity.
- Consultation1.0 h
- Implementation2.0 h
- Testing2.0 h
- Review / QA1.0 h
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Scan for this in your stack
Free · runs locallyCheck whether your project pulls in CVE-2013-6208 — or any other known-vulnerable package — straight from your lock files. Free and open source; it runs locally and uploads nothing.
References Go to the primary sourcePrimary sources — vendor advisories, patches and trackers. Where our summary and a reference disagree, the reference wins.
Primary sourcesPractitioner notes
ContributedPeer-ranked notes from engineers who’ve handled CVE-2013-6208 in production — separate from our analysis above.
The advisory tells you what broke. It rarely tells you what actually worked. If you’ve dealt with this one, that detail is what the next engineer is searching for.
- The version that genuinely resolved it — not the one the vendor claimed
- A config change or rule that shut the vector down
- A gotcha in the upgrade path that cost you an afternoon
No notes yet
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- Verified mitigations, workarounds, and config changes
- Version or environment caveats, and links to real fixes
- No weaponised exploit code, or anything meant to cause harm
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